Kal-El, Star-Child
by Myne Comix Meg
Summary: Two families, two worlds apart, join forces to preserve a life... a life that will one day, save the world... (My very, very first superhero fanfic. Rated teen for character death. It's always sad.)
1. Contact

**|Kal-El, Star-Child|**

**By:**  
Myne Comix Meg

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**A/N My mother encouraged me to put up something a little less sinister (i.e. Joker! X}) i honestly don't mind taking a break from that fandom, as I have much more in store for him later!**

**I realize not everyone believes the way I do, but I wanted to do something a little different. The rules of the site do not hinder me from including my religious beliefs in what I write, so if you don't agree with me, that's ok; just please respect me, don't bash me, and I will pay you the same courtesy.**

**Please enjoy this story (finally something with more than one chapter!) no matter how you feel personally!**

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**Dedications:**

**For Christopher Reeve, the _real_ Superman, and for Brandon Routh, who made a very wonderful incarnation of Superma; both of whom played our hero the way he was meant to be played.**

**I own nothing. Batman and Superman and their respective families belong to DC and a host of other lucky people, of which, I am not one. **

**I wrote this last year, (before Batman really, _really _entered the scene), on my iPod, so it might not be up to the caliber you might already be expecting from me. Just know that I did my best, and if you must flame, please use tiny matches. X}**

**Encouraging reviews are "super" welcome! :)**

**Stick me with a fork; I'm done. - The Spectacular Spiderman; Spiderman**

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_A flaming, comet-like orb races across the universe. _

_Shooting through space at incredible speeds, it dives into Earth's atmosphere. Gravity exacts its strong power over the object and hurls it towards the ground. Mere minutes after entering Earth's atmosphere, the miniature space-craft crashes in a wide open area on a large mass of private property. Smoke wafts upward as the crunched, red-hot metal cools in the moisture of the dirt. Receiving a signal from its origin of flight, a small beacon of green light begins to shine out into the darkness._

_Somewhere, a child cries out._

_A slight drizzle starts to fall. It's close to midnight..._

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**|Gotham City, NY|**

It was a dark and stormy night. Great fingers of white-hot lightning flashed across the sky, and a low growl of thunder, seemingly curling up from the edges of the horizon, stretched through the air over a partially sleeping Gotham City. A tall, well-built man in a trench-coat entered the great oaken door of his home just as a slight drizzle from the approaching storm began to fall.

"Martha? Martha?" he called out. "Where are you, dearest?"

"Here I am, Tom!" answered Martha Wayne, rushing forward to greet her husband.

"There you are, darling," said Dr. Thomas Wayne, as he embraced his wife.

He kissed her forehead lovingly.

"And how is my lovely bride," asked the doctor, placing a tender hand against her cheek.

"I'm well, thank you, husband," she replied with a heart warming smile.

"Where's my little Bruce?" asked Thomas, looking about the entryway.

"He's upstairs playing 'master equestrian' with Alfred," said Martha.

Thomas laughed.

"Ah, Bruce! Only four years old, and already he knows just how to get what he wants out of good old-,"

Suddenly, a loud noise like a rocket roared overhead. A blinding, flaming flash of light whizzed past the sitting room window across the hallway, and then a huge,_** *KABOOM!***_ shook the manor. The lights fizzled and crackled then died completely. Martha gave a small shriek and clung to her husband.

"Thomas, what's happening?" she asked, shaken. "What on Earth-,"

"Shhh," said Thomas, calming her and placing a finger over her trembling lips. "I'm sure everything is fine. Probably just some lightning exploding into the power lines."

Martha eyed him with a look that said she refused that answer.

A frightened scream had come from upstairs when the lights abruptly went out, followed by the wails of a small boy.

"Mommy! Mommy! Come get me; I'm scared! Mommy!"

It was little Bruce.

"I'd better go and get him. He's dreadfully afraid of the dark, you know," said Martha, feeling her way down the entry hall.

"No need for that, madam," said a reassuring British voice. It was Alfred Pennyworth, the family butler. He was carrying a whimpering Bruce in one arm, and a lighted candlestick in the other, and somehow still managing to look stone dignified while descending the stairs.

"Oh, thank you, Alfred!" said Martha, reaching for the crying boy. "There, there, my little angel. Mommy's got you. There, now. Nothing's going to get you. Everything is going to be alright. There," she soothed, cuddling Bruce close to her, as she went to sit in the sitting room across the way. The child snuggled into the safety of his mother's arms and quickly quieted.

"Alfred, would you go to the kitchen and bring out a couple of the emergency flashlights. I think I'll need one to-,"

Suddenly, a great beacon of green light illuminated the night sky. Everyone startled and looked out the bay window. Green light poured in through the massive shades, and all over the room, spilling out into the hallway where Thomas and Alfred still stood staring, temporarily dumbfounded.

"_Investigate_," Thomas finished in curiosity.

"Thomas, what on Earth-?"

"Shall I call the authorities, sir?" questioned Alfred.

"No, Alfred," answered Thomas, gazing out the window. He felt a strange, inexplicable pulling inside himself to go find whatever it was that was emanating the emerald shaft of light. He decided to follow his inclination. "No, you stay here with Mrs. Wayne and Bruce. I'm going to go find out what's making that weird light."

"Of course, sir," said Alfred, as he went to fetch the flashlights.

"What do you suppose it is, dear?" Martha asked, gazing out the window in cautious awe.

"I don't know, darling," replied Thomas, stepping nearer to her and placing a hand on her shoulder. "I really don't know."

"Here are the torches, Master Thomas," said Alfred, having returned from the kitchen.

"Thank you, Alfred."

"Good luck, sir."

"No such thing, Alfred, but I appreciate the well-wishes," said Thomas cheerfully. Then he stepped towards the door.

Martha grabbed his arm before he turned to leave.

"Be careful," she pleaded.

He smiled at her.

"Always," he replied.

"I'll be praying," said Martha.

He patted her hand comfortingly. Then, he stepped out into the stormy night.

The cold wind howled and whipped dead leaves around the yard. Rain fell a little harder than before and flashes of lightning illuminated the sky for a moment. A bat flapped by wildly and screeched silently overhead.

"Ok, you weird little UFO," he said, shining the flashlight on his path. He gazed up at the green beam and followed the shaft down to its point of beginning. "Just what are you up to. And who are you trying to contact..."

Thomas thunked an oblong green crystal onto a desk in the library. It glowed strangely, seemingly by itself, and the eerie light cast from it made them all look ghastly. Alfred poked the fire back into existence in the fireplace.

Martha, eyed it curiously. "What_ is_ it?"

Thomas looked up at her. "I have no idea."

"Perhaps, if I may, sir, suggest that it seems to be a crystal of some sort," said Alfred, still prodding around in the fireplace.

"Yes, I can see that, but one that glows without aid of any other source of light?" said Thomas. "That doesn't seem possible."

"Perhaps it is an _alien_ substance, sir," said Alfred, approaching the desk. "After all, you did say it was found in a rather scorched, beat up UFO-looking sort of thing."

"Oh, Thomas! Aliens?" said Martha, looking pale.

"Martha-," Thomas began.

"I know, I know, we don't believe in aliens. But how, then, do we explain_ this_?" she said, lifting her hands in an imploring gesture.

"Look here, sir," said Alfred, who had picked up the bizarre crystal.

"What is it, Alfred?" asked Thomas.

"There seems to be a way to open it, or pull it apart, or something."

"Let me see that."

Alfred handed it over. Thomas placed both hands at either end of the cool crystal and pulled slowly.

"I think it's opening," he said, grinning with excitement.

Suddenly, a huge, brilliant light burst from the center of the crystal. Thomas immediately dropped it and fell back with Martha and Alfred. The light was so bright they had to shield their eyes for a moment. The sound was intense. Then at last, it dimmed. They gaped in awe as the form of a man facing away from them began to take shape in the light. The figure slowly began to turn to them. It looked amazingly human.

"I don't believe it!" exclaimed Thomas.

"My word," muttered Alfred.

"Dear God," Martha prayed in worry.

"It's a hologram crystal! An actual, honest to goodness holo-crystal!" Thomas informed in amazement.

"Mommy, what is that?!" exclaimed little Bruce. The loud sounds had disturbed his sleep on the sitting room sofa, and he had come in to see what was going on. His sleepy little eyes widened in shock when he saw the shining person standing in his parents' library.

"Bruce, come here, now!" said Martha in fear.

"Greetings, Earthlings," said a loud yet soft voice.

The frightened group looked up to see that the man had turned and was looking at them. He were not a hideous monster, nor a skinny green thing with a hulking head and big, soulless black eyes. He was a normal-looking human being, merely dressed differently in a most regal and elegant way. Martha gasped. Thomas and little Bruce gaped in wonder. Alfred looked as though he would faint.

The man spoke again.

"Greetings, in the name of God, from the planet Krypton," he said, extending his hand majestically.

He smiled at the frightened and curious looks on their faces.

"Please. Do not be afraid. I wish you no harm. I am Jor-El, a chief scientist, and head of the house of El."

Thomas stepped forward.

"It is indeed an honor to meet you," he said, bowing slightly. "My name is Thomas Wayne. I'm a doctor and a businessman. And this is my lovely wife and fellow philanthropist, Martha."

Martha, heretofore speechless, stepped closer. "How do you do?" she said shakily. "You're not... An alien?" she asked, losing her fear.

Jor-El smiled.

"No, dear lady. I am not. I am human, just as you yourselves are," Jor-El answered.

Martha, relieved and pleased, then said, gesturing behind her, "This is out butler, Alfred Pennyworth."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, sir," said Alfred, a bit flustered, bowing in turn.

"It is truly a pleasure to meet you all," said Jor-El, smiling kindly. "You are a beautiful household."

Martha smiled, forgetting that Bruce was at her side, who was still staring wide-eyed at the shiny man.

"Where is this planet Krypton you say you are from?" asked an interested Thomas at length.

"Many, many solar systems away from yours," answered Jor-El. "By my calculations, the probe and this holo-crystal have been traveling for four years to reach you."

Alfred's jaw dropped.

"This holo-crystal was installed for the purpose of communication with any Earthlings the probe might encounter," Jor-El informed. "You see, four years ago, we on Krypton were interested in learning if there were humans living on the known planets. I was granted the privilege of investigating yours.

"Providentially for us, the probe has landed among the peaceful, and the holo-crystal can now be used as a way to gain your aid, as I and my wife, Lara, are in desperate need of your assistance."

"Why do you need our help?" asked Martha.

The Kryptonian's eyes saddened.

"Our planet, Krypton, is dying," said Jor-El. "And although I have proved this with evidence countless times, the Council refuses to listen.

"After a while, they took away my place on the Council and my freedom to practice science, or to even speak to anyone about my ominous findings. They branded me a radical, and said I was mad, and that I was abusing the privileges of a scientist. Then, they placed my wife and I under den-watch, and we have been prisoners in our own home this past year."

Shock reigned on the faces of his hearers.

"However, in the privacy of my underground den-lab, in secret, I have found a way of escape," said Jor-El.

"For whom?" asked Thomas, wondering who would except the banned scientist's help.

"For our son," Jor-El answered.

"Oh, dear God!" Martha gasped. Tears of pity and compassion spilled down her cheeks.

"Come here, my son," he murmured, turning away from them. "No one thought Lara could bear children," he said over his shoulder. "It took some time and much patience. But he is finally here."

Then, after a moment of rustling through something in his world, another being materialized on the screen - a tiny infant boy.

Bruce, who had been listening in confused intensity all this time, suddenly perked up. There, the shining man held a little baby, all bundled up in colorful blankets. He cocked his head in confusion. Aliens had babies?

"This is our only son, Kal-El," said Jor-El, moving back the cloths for the Earthlings to see his little one. "It means 'Star-Child.'"

He was a gorgeous baby. He cooed sweetly, gazing back into their wondering eyes. His hair was jet black, and a tiny forelock of it curled like an 's' over his forehead. His skin was clean and almost glowed white. His plump little cheeks were rosy, with slight dimples to them, and an itty-bitty one in his chin. His thin little lips were soft and sweet. And his eyes! His eyes captivated those of Martha Wayne with their inhumanly blue clarity and innocence. His elegant lashes blinked and blinked over his eyes and he seemed to be looking right through her. Taking her in.

Martha clasped a hand over her mouth and smiled through her tears, "Oh! He's the most exquisitely beautiful child I've ever seen!"

Jor-El smiled proudly. "Thank you."

"Mommy, what's that?" Bruce now whispered, tugging gently at his mother's skirt.

"Oh!" Martha said, suddenly remembering her own child was standing behind her. "Jor-El, this is our son, Bruce," she said, pulling the boy forward. "He's four years old."

Jor-El looked down at the little boy who had approached with curiosity in his eyes, but caution on his face. He smiled. The boy was smart. He knelt before him and looked him in the eyes.

"Greetings, Bruce," he said kindly.

"Hello," said Bruce, politely.

"This is Kal-El," he said, showing him the baby. "He might be your friend someday."

Bruce looked down at the shining baby. The infant was fascinated by Bruce, and his bright eyes widened and he smiled. The light blue eyes locked with Bruce's deeper, darker ones. They seemed to be trying to tell him something; he didn't know what, but Bruce smiled back anyway. He couldn't help it. The baby was too cute!

Suddenly, the child reached out his hand to touch Bruce. Bruce startled. This was all so very strange and exciting! But at last, he relaxed, and giving in, he too reached out and touched the baby's hand. Their hands went right through each other's, of course, for it was only a live hologram. But it just felt right to at least try to touch the baby, for some unexplainable reason.

Kal-El didn't seem to notice or care that the sensation of touch did not reach his tiny fingers through the hologram, and he laughed a pretty baby laugh. Bruce grinned. There was something special about that baby, that moment, that touch. Bruce wasn't fully aware of what, but that was okay. He just wanted to watch the adorable baby play with his side of the hologram; trying to reach him through the huge void of time and space between Earth and Krypton.

Martha lovingly placed her hands on her son's shoulders. Jor-El stood and let the baby play with Bruce on the ground.

"He seems to like young Wayne," commented Jor-El with pleasure. "You're son is very handsome. Like the father," he said addressing himself to both Martha and Thomas.

Thomas nodded his thanks for the compliment.

Martha smiled. "They are both sweet little boys. They would make the best of friends."

Bruce had begun playing a game of peek-a-boo with the baby, and Kal-El wriggled and laughed with glee as Bruce continued to pop his smiling face at the infant from behind his hands.

"I have a way to save my son's life," continued Jor-El. "For this reason, I am asking that you help me learn about Earth, and whether or not my son could survive with an Earthling family on your planet."

"Is there no way for you or your wife to escape?" Thomas asked.

Jor-El smiled sadly.

"Unfortunately, no, there is not," he informed. "I have only just enough time to finish an ark for my son before our planet will cease to exist. And even if I could build more, I have given my word as a scientist and a Kryptonian to the Council that I will not leave the planet. I offered to let Lara join Kal-El, for there would be room for her if I made the necessary adjustments to the craft, but," he smiled again, "she is brave, and very stubborn. She has chosen to remain with me. My fate is her fate. Her fate is mine. We are one flesh. Forever."

He looked down for a moment. There was silence as they let his words sink in. A planet was about to be destroyed, and a population of who knew how many souls was about to be lost, all because of foolishness and pride. Stupidity.

The two children still played together as though nothing separated them; one an Earthling, the other a Kryptonian. Both entirely different, yet so very much the same. Unbeknownst to them, they would soon occupy the same world.

Jor-El calmly picked up little Kal-El from the floor, and cradling him tenderly, put the baby back in the realm of his world which was not visible in the hologram. Bruce simply stood and stared. The alien baby was gone.

"So, Thomas Wayne," said Jor-El finally. "Will you help us? Will you help me save my son?"

Martha stiffened and held her breath. It grieved her heart to know that only the baby would survive the eventual destruction of Krypton. Here, on Earth, she tried to help little families like this one. But in this case, when help wasn't near enough, when the refuge was another planet, she could do nothing. She cried silently. If her husband accepted to help Jor-El, she vowed silently to help him all she could as well.

At last, Thomas smiled.

"I'll try to help you the best that I possibly can, Jor-El," said Thomas. "I promise."

"As will I," rejoined Martha. "You have our word as Earthlings."

The scientist smiled and nodded.

"It is good," he said. "Peace to you."

And with that, the transmission abruptly ended. The light faded back into the crystal, which then shut and dimmed. The shine from the crystal was not as powerful as before, but it still glowed enough to illuminate the faces of the Wayne family.

Thomas held his wife. She cried into his shoulder.

"Alfred," said Thomas, gesturing to Bruce, who stood stock still, mesmerized in front of the crystal.

"Of course, sir," said Alfred, resuming once more his more natural, dignified air. "Come along, Master Bruce. It's way past your bedtime."

Bruce yielded to the butler's gentle tugs to lead him up to bed. He watched the crystal as long as he could. What the shining man had said had been very sad; he knew because of his father's grave face and his mother's tears. Talk of destruction worried him; it sounded bad. And the shiny, little alien baby? What was going to happen to him, and to the man and his wife? He didn't understand it all. The shining man had said the baby would be his friend. But now they were both gone. None of it made sense to the small boy. But he knew he would never forget this night.

As Alfred and Bruce filed out of the library, Thomas moved away from Martha and knelt to pick up the fallen crystal. He fingered it for a moment in amazement. They'd just made contact with people on another planet. A people with no hope of escape from their doom. Yet one man and one woman felt they had a chance for their only son. And they'd reached out to Earth for help. The retained determination in such a hopeless situation astounded Thomas, and made him respect the stoic scientist and his brave wife.

"Incredible," he muttered to himself.

"You're really going to help them, aren't you," said Martha, coming up beside him, and placing a hand on his arm and another on his shoulder.

Thomas hugged her to himself and looked up determinedly.

"With God's help," he said, "yes. I am."

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**Lemme know what you think! Most likely this will be the only time I write in this fandom. :)**


	2. Krypton Ends

**|Several months later; the planet Krypton|**

A woman hugged herself into the shadows of the Den-Hut El, clutching a bundle to her bosom. She glanced behind herself nervously. The guards outside the crystal dwelling were too busy talking to notice her. Quickly and quietly, she made her way down a stairwell and through the winding maze of a corridor. She had finally reached the basement level hall, at the end of which stood a door. After placing her palm against the hand outline etched into the crystal wall, a scanner read her handprint like data.

_**"Scanning. Lara-El. Access granted. Enter, Lara,"**_ it greeted aloud in its feminine voice.

"Shout it to the galaxy, why don't you," Lara hissed at the den-lab intercom, as the chamber door slid open.

_**"You're welcome, Madam El,"**_ it replied, according to program.

"Lara? Is that you?" questioned a male voice.

"Yes, Jor-El," she replied, slipping down the steps into the den-lab arena. She approached her husband with the bundle. "I've got the baby. The centurions weren't paying attention."

Lara pulled back bright red and yellow blankets to reveal the precious occupant: a small, raven-haired infant dressed in an outlandishly large, blue baby's gown. A tiny 's'-shaped forelock rested against his fair skin. His incredibly clear blue eyes shone in the dim light as the child gazed up at his enormous parents. His name was Kal-El. It meant "Star-Child" in their native tongue.

He was only months old. He had been a miracle to the people of Krypton, as it was not usual for a couple of such age to be able to bring forth offspring. They had been childless since their uniting. Now, the two had already begun to grow silver-haired. Yet the life-mates had not given up hope that one day, Lara might bear a child. And so she did. Kal-El was that child. The only son of Jor-El, and sole heir to the house of El.

"Oh," she gushed, "he's such a perfect baby. He's the most beautiful baby in the whole universe!"

Jor-El placed a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder and kissed her.

"And having seen a good deal of that universe, you should know," Jor-El complimented.

She laughed and traced little Kal-El's rosy cheek. He giggled. They smiled over him.

"You've done well, my love," Jor-El encouraged quietly.

Lara smiled, then laid Kal-El aside in a play pen. The baby cooed and laughed, wriggling in his blankets, while Jor-El returned in earnest to his work.

"How is it coming?" she asked, laying her hands on his shoulders.

"I'm almost finished," the scientist answered. "Soon all Kryptonian knowledge will be installed into this clear crystal, which will serve as individual holographic memory banks once the ice-den is established. And this blue interactive hologram crystal will be ready to be inserted here," he pointed out. "This green crystal will be the foundation of the ice-den. Everything is in perfect readiness. Kal-El will be well provided for, in the event that he discovers his true identity."

Lara turned away meditatively and smoothed her silvery blonde hair over her shoulder.

"It's like a nightmare, Jor-El. Everything you've ever feared about our home is true."

"Yes. And this is one time I wish I'd have been wrong. I would give anything for it not to have come to this, for this not to be happening. But it has... it is..."

"And yet, for our son's sake, I am grateful," Lara reminded, looking lovingly at the baby boy.

The infant giggled and babbled, waving his chubby little arms in the air. His parents smiled.

"What will he be like when he is full grown?" Lara wondered out loud, knowing she would never see the day. Absently she fondled Kal-El's silky baby hair, and let him play with her fingers.

"Like a superman," Jor-El stated. "He'll be the most powerful human being on Earth. There's nothing like him at present, I'm certain."

Lara turned back to him.

"Earth?" she said, worry in her tone. "You've chosen Earth?"

Jor-El nodded, absorbed in his activities.

"But why there, Jor-El? It's such an unbalanced place, from what you've told me."

"Perhaps so. But because of Earth's yellow sun and lower gravitational pull, he will have special abilities like no other being on that planet has ever seen. He'll be able to protect himself and others, should there be any on that planet that wish to harm him.

"For months now, I've been in communication with a certain Earthling, named Thomas Wayne. He's a doctor and a science enthusiast, very much like myself, and quite well off, in Earth currency standards. I contacted him via the hologram crystal in the probe I sent in Earth's direction four years ago before Project Life Search was terminated. You remember. Back when the Science Council was interested in finding out if humans inhabited the other known planets. My assignment was to build a probe that would eventually reach the planet Earth."

"And it took that long to reach them?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," he admitted. "But Kal-El's ship will travel that distance in about three days time; it is that much faster than the probe.

"Thankfully, it landed on the continent America. A free, democratic/republic system rules there, I believe. Thomas has been informing me daily as to the different terrains of the land, and the ways of their people by using the reverse transmitter on the holo-crystal. He's kept it and the probe hidden in an underground cave beneath his home at his estate, Wayne Manor, which is the exact location where the probe landed."

He grew solemn. "He understands our plight. His wife, Martha, has borne a son, as well," he added.

Lara's heart jumped, and her look softened.

"Is he to be sent to them, then?" she asked, a hand still resting on the baby's head.

"No," Jor-El informed. "The young Wayne must not feel threatened with replacement, or that he is in competition with another for his parents' affections. No, I'm sending him to a section of the continent known to them as Kansas."

"Kansas?" Lara let the foreign name roll off her tongue. It sounded and felt so strange to speak outside of her native language.

"Kansas," Jor-El repeated. "From what Thomas Wayne tells me of that section of America's terrain, it is farm country. Some good people live there, and one family interests me in particular. The House of Kent. Thomas informed me that he knew the head of the household, Jonathan Kent, when they were young. He and his wife, Martha Clark-Kent, have been unable to bear children."

"Like us," Lara associated compassionately.

Jor-El smiled.

"Yes, like us," he said. "Until now."

Kal-El giggled, and Jor-El glanced at him

"Thomas assures me that Martha Kent will be a good Earth-mother for him," he said quietly.

"But the holo-crystal," Lara continued. "Will not the reverse transmission record and display to them what is happening to us when...,"

She could not finish. She knew of their frightening shared fate, and speaking about it did not make the fear go away any faster.

"It would have," Jor-El informed, "had I not told him to destroy it and the probe and bury it, lest he witness Krypton's destruction. He protested, as did his wife, Martha. They said they wanted to be with us, to stand by us till the end. But I told them they could not. I wouldn't let them. I would not wish it on anyone to witness our fate. Thomas was a good man, a good friend."

Lara bowed her head sadly.

"It saddens me that it has come to this," continued Jor-El grimly. "I tried to warn them. These trembles. The climate changes. It was not just our orbit shifting. Krypton's entire core had become unstable. Signs of implosion were everywhere. But they wouldn't listen to me. They said I was an insubordinate lunatic. That I was going to cause a spirit of dissension and climate of panic throughout the population. Then they put me under permanent den-watch, and placed you and our innocent, unborn son under it with me. Kept you both from freedom."

He looked at her sorrowfully. He felt guilty and responsible for this injustice against his family. But Lara ran a cool hand over his face and smiled.

"I chose to be placed under den-watch and renounce my freedom with you," she reminded. "From the moment of our uniting, when I forsook the house of my father to be with you, I chose to be with you always, whether in freedom or imprisonment. Even in death, my love... I'm staying with you. One flesh, forever."

"I told them I could make a way of escape," he went on, gesturing toward the craft, "but it's too late, now. I couldn't possibly build anymore life-crafts at this late date, much less the Ark I had first intended once I had proved this one could work. And it does work, not only in theory, but also in deep space. They said I couldn't do it, that it was impossible. Now, it's the end.

"And those pathetic underground shelters they built to last for the duration of the trembles?" Jor-El grimaced. "Those aren't going to do a thing. This whole planet is going to implode from the inside out. There's no hope for those that believe the shelters are the answer."

The plans for a much larger life-craft lay on the ground in a messy heap where Jor-El had flung them in frustration.

"We're all done for," he stated bitterly.

Lara stepped over the plans to embrace him.

"It's not really the end, Jor-El," she encouraged. "Not really. Not for us, nor our love. We will live on forever. In Kal-El. In the holo-crystal. In Heaven. For all eternity."

He smiled at her. Her wisdom was undeniable, because of course, she was right, as usual.

"You make me forget we will never grow old together," he said softly, resting his head against hers, and letting their noses touch.

"We will have all of eternity to grow old, husband," she replied, adding, "not as if we haven't already."

Jor-El chuckled quietly, and Lara closed her eyes, hugging him tighter.

"Are you not afraid at all?" he asked concernedly, holding her close and looking down into her eyes. "Not even a little?"

"I would be lying if I said I was not," she answered truthfully. "But death has no sting for us. We do not go alone. And we have each other. You and I will never die," she whispered tenderly.

"That's my brave, stubborn little wife," he said, lovingly kissing her forehead.

She smiled back up at him and kissed his cheek. Then, turning back to the blue holo-crystal, he recorded the last finishing touches.

"Jor-El? What is this large one for?" Lara asked, fingering the one to which she referred. It glowed a brilliant crimson red.

Jor-El looked up from his work.

"That is a red sun crystal. It is an artificial reproduction of our red sunlight, captured and preserved as an endless energy source inside the prisms. This will enable him to empower his mate, should he choose to unite," he explained.

"I don't understand," Lara confessed. "How will red sunlight empower an Earthling?"

"Kal-El's molecular structure will be permanently altered and enhanced by Earth's yellow sun. The same will happen with his mate, once she is placed inside the chamber this crystal will create, and is exposed to the red sunlight simulation," Jor-El replied. "If he becomes anything like you or I, he will want to protect her by giving her the powers granted by his native sun that would keep her safe. For anyone going after him will surely go after her as well. But thanks to the differences in our planet's suns, they would be superhuman together. Sharing one another's fate. One flesh. Just like us."

Lara pressed her lips together firmly and a single tear slid down her cheek as she thought of the almost fugitive-like life her son would have to live on the faraway planet Earth.

"I pray he will find the same strong, brave, loyal woman in her that I have found in you, my life," said Jor-El sadly.

He then turned back to his work.

Lara looked over at Kal-El playing quietly in his pen. Mother and son had had so little time together. After today, she would never see him again. One tear followed another until they flowed freely, and the brave woman broke down and began to cry to herself for her son.

* * *

At last, along with the clear memory crystal, the red sun crystal, and the green ice-den crystal, Jor-El placed the blue holo-crystal into a special chamber in the small rocket.

Suddenly, the craft lit up, its engines ignited, and it began hovering from where it rested before Jor-El. He looked at it with pride.

The foreboding trembles had started rumbling under their feet once more. Lara stepped closer to her husband.

"There. It is done," Jor-El intoned officially. "This interactive hologram of us will be his instructor when the time comes. I've recorded in it and the other crystals everything he will need to know about living on Earth, a stranger in a strange land. We will teach him everything, including the things he will want to know in the event he falls in love and wishes to unite."

"A Kryptonian uniting to an Earthling," Lara mused. "It's strange to even think about."

"We were all created equal, Lara, my love, even if some of us are a little behind in technology," Jor-El reminded humorously.

"But, Jor-El, the Earthlings are lightyears behind us. They're so primitive. How will they know how to care for little Kal-El? And how will his life-mate know how to love him when he is fully grown?" Lara questioned further, scooping the infant into her arms. He had fallen asleep.

"The same way they have nurtured their own young, and united amongst one another, for generations," said Jor-El. "It's the way God has made all of us."

"You have so much faith in them, and you've only spoken with one man," said Lara. "How do you know you can trust them and why?"

"Because I must. There is no other way to save Kal-El's life." Jor-El's eyes met those of his wife. Tears glistened in both. "With all the powers he will gain from Earth's yellow sun and lower gravity, he will be confused. Frightened. Even misunderstood. But he will be wiser, stronger, and faster than anyone that may try to hurt him, or whomever he will love, on Earth. Through the projector of this crystal, when the time comes, I will teach him that he must always use his powers for good and to protect those of his new home planet. He must be an example for the generations of humankind that are to come long after we are gone."

An experiment crashed to the ground. Lara startled. The rattling had grown worse and a hot, putrid smell invaded the atmosphere. Jor-El quickly handed her a cloth that had been soaked in a strong liquid sedative. Carefully, she placed it over Kal-El's nose and mouth until his breathing was as one in deep sleep.

"Is he well sedated?" Jor-El asked. "It will have to last for three days and nights."

Lara nodded.

"It is done... I am ready."

Suddenly, the den-lab intercom went off. It was an alarming warning.

_**"Intruder alert! Print data not recognized. Access denied. Unauthorized entry. Intruder alert! Intruder alert!"**_

Angry fists pounded on the door and raised voices hollered, along with every other commotion raging outside.

"Jor-El! We know you're in there! Open up in the name of the Council!" an officer demanded. "Or we will break down this door!"

"The centurion guards!" Lara exclaimed, clutching Kal-El to herself protectively. "They must have heard the rockets ignite! Oh, Jor-El! What'll we do? They'll try and stop us from saving the baby!"

"Wait here," Jor-El ordered.

Ascending the steps out of the den-lab arena, he scanned his palm against the wall, and the chamber door opened slightly. Jor-El faced the centurions.

"Yes, Commander Zan-Ar? What do you want?" he asked the soldier calmly.

"We know you're trying to escape, Jor-El! We heard the rockets," said the leader, pointing in Jor-El's face accusingly. "You have broken your word to the Council!"

"You are mistaken," Jor-El replied, shaking his head solemnly.

"Is that so?" Commander Zan-Ar barked. "And how am I supposed to believe that?"

"See for yourself," Jor-El replied mildly, opening the door further.

Zan-Ar peered inside suspiciously. His eyes narrowed as they scrutinized the room. Then, he gasped. There, in the dim light below the stairs, he could see Lara holding the sleeping little Kal-El to herself, fear straining on every feature. The devastated expression in her eyes penetrated the man as the tears spilled over onto her face.

"Please," she pleaded, "please, have mercy on my son. He is only a baby. Please, spare him! I beg of you, give him this chance at life!"

Zan-Ar's gruff countenance softened in pity. He looked at Jor-El.

"They'll have my head for this," he said, his voice choked with emotion. "I don't know what good you think it'll do, but for the child's sake, I'm going to pretend I never saw this."

Jor-El smiled in gratitude, and patted Zan-Ar's shoulder.

"We thank you for your kindness," he said.

"Yes, thank you! Thank you!" Lara cried gratefully.

The ground's violent shaking increased for a moment, and the men behind Zan-Ar struggled to keep their balance.

"Now, go," Jor-El said, looking directly into his friend's eyes. "Spend your last moments on this planet with your family. There isn't much time."

Commander Zan-Ar nodded.

"Come on, men," he ordered. "Let's go and get the people into the shelters. Go on! Move out! There's nothing to see here."

The men saluted, and began to run out of the rattling den-hut. Before the chamber door could slide shut, Zan-Ar turned back to Jor-El.

"There's still time for you and your wife and baby to join us in the shelter," he hinted. "Everyone is allowed to save himself there; even you. I got the Council to relent on that."

Jor-El shook his head.

"Lara and I are eternally grateful for your secret loyalty, Zan-Ar, but, I am a man of my word, and as I have promised, we are staying here."

Zan-Ar studied Jor-El's face. It was strangely calm. Then, suddenly, he understood why.

"This is the end, isn't it," he asked, point blank.

Jor-El nodded.

"It is just as you said," Zan-Ar affirmed. "I knew the Council was foolish not to listen to you. Now, we shall all perish."

"I fear that is the case," said Jor-El sadly.

"Do you think it will work?" Zan-Ar asked after a moment, gesturing toward the life-craft.

"I know it will," said Jor-El with confidence. "God has a purpose for my son, and I am going to help Him carry it out by giving my son this chance to escape."

The commander looked down for a moment.

"Forgive me for doubting your word, Jor-El," said Zan-Ar contritely. "I should have known you of all people would not be so selfish."

"You were just doing your duty. You are a good soldier," Jor-El answered.

"Well," said Zan-Ar kindly, almost reluctanty, "good luck."

Jor-El smiled.

"No such thing, Commander," he replied. "But thank you, just the same."

Zan-Ar saluted him, then took his hand.

"You are a better man than I, Jor-El. Peace to you," he commended.

"Go with God, my friend," said Jor-El. "Lara and I shall soon see you on the other side, yes?"

"You have my word," replied Zan-Ar. "Farewell."

"Farewell," said Jor-El, as the commander walked away.

Then, he shut the door.

The noisy sounds of rumbling overhead had gotten louder. Jor-El descended back into the den-lab arena. Lara was cuddling Kal-El, and pacing with him up and down the floor, singing peaceful songs to him in their native tongue. He hated to stop her, but the impending disaster's arrival was getting closer and closer.

"Come away, Lara," he said, approaching her softly. "It has begun. It is time."

Lara smiled weakly and clutched her husband's arm with her free hand.

Jor-El led her back to the life-craft, then moved aside so his beloved could place their infant son into the capsule. Hastily, she snapped him into the harness that would protect him and prevent him from pitching and rolling during the long trip.

"Godspeed on your journey, little one," Lara whispered tenderly over the sleeping baby. "Sleep. Grow and live well. May you be delivered safely into the arms of another, my son. My precious, beautiful, little Kal-El... My Star-Child..."

The heat was becoming unbearable. Unconscious Kal-El squirmed in his bright red and yellow blankets. Lara leaned over and planted a last kiss on her baby's forehead. A single tear dripped from beneath her lashes and caressed his cheek. Jor-El pulled her away gently. The tremors had actually begun to cause the den-hut to collapse. One could hear the shouts and cries from the frightened people outside.

Jor-El kissed the ring on his finger, bearing the insignia of the house of El: a Kryptonese 's' inside a diamond shield, the Kryptonian symbol of infinity, hope, and peace. The ring had been handed down through the generations. Gently, he placed the emblem of the ring against the child's forehead, leaving an invisible data imprint on the infant's flesh in the shape of the crest.

"This seal will be scanned by the holo-crystal and let it know it has not been tampered with by the wrong hands. Our messages will only activate in the hands of our son... The last son of Krypton."

He squeezed his son's soft baby hand for the last time. Then, the two stepped back, and Jor-El pressed the launch button. They watched the rocket close, sealing the baby safely inside. The take-off sequence had begun, coordinates programed for Earth. A portal in the roof opened up to reveal the red-hot night sky overhead. The ship slowly started its ascension out of the basement den-lab into the air. At last, after gaining a safe distance away from the den-hut, the rocket hurtled at top speed into outer space, carrying Kal-El away with it, toward safety.

Lara waved to it, tears streaming down her pale face. Jor-El lifted his hand in blessing towards it.

"Farewell, Kal-El!" he shouted over the roar of the rocket and the collapsing planet. "My son..."

Lara took his cheek in her hand. She smiled.

"_Our_ son," she said.

Jor-El looked into her eyes. They were the same deep, pure, crystal-clear blue as little Kal-El's. They held fear and love and tears all at the same time. She had just given up her only son, whom she had only gotten to nurture and love on for less than a year. She had lost him to another on a strange and distant planet. On top of that, she was going to die. Yet she seemed to find courage and comfort in knowing she would leave this existence with her husband, and that on Earth perhaps she had the hope that her son would be loved and safe.

Jor-El caressed his wife's hair, and wiped the tears from her cheeks. She smiled for him bravely.

"Heart and soul, I love you," he whispered softly.

"And I, you," she replied. "Always."

Then he kissed her. Kissed her passionately as one saying goodbye, until eternity. Lara clutched him to herself tearfully.

"Oh, Jor-El," she cried, "hold me! Hold me close and don't ever let me go!"

"Never, my love," he vowed over the noise, as a single tear drifted down his face. "Never."

The ground now rocked incessantly, making it difficult for the two Kryptonians to stand. The heat made their flesh feel as though it were burning.

And so, life-mates, Lara and Jor-El knelt together, side by side, watching their only son, Kal-El, fade away in a last glint of light from the slowly rising Krypton sun. Thus they clung to one another until that last moment, when time, for them, - for all of Krypton - ceased to exist.

Blasts from the core of the planet illuminated the sky, while screams and shrieks of terror mounted all around. Sweltering, destructive implosions created chaos everywhere. People were dying at every turn, either being crushed by debris or burned alive by the intense heat surging from beneath the ground.

Lara squeezed her eyes shut, and pressed herself to Jor-El's chest. The last thing she wanted to see and hear was her husband's face and her husband's heart. Jor-El crushed his mate against him, attempting to shield her with his own body till the very last. Defiantly, he held his head high, and glared bravely into their searing, rocky doom.

**"Krypton lives forever!"** shouted Jor-El. It was the old victory battle cry.

Lara gritted her teeth for what she knew was coming next. Jor-El loyally fell on top of her, trying to cover her body with his own, and spare her the brunt of it. But he could not. It was no use.

It never could be...

* * *

_Smothering heat. _

_Indescribable pain. _

_Pitch black darkness, mixed with a cacophony of deafening noise. _

_The sounds of a planet dying, it's entire population crying out. _

_Any moment now, and it would all be over..._

* * *

**Angsty, I know. Reviews are swell!**


	3. Reaching Earth

**|Three days later, Smallville, Kansas|**

An old, red pickup truck slowly rumbled its way down a peaceful winding country road. The moon was full and high in a deep, velvety purple sky as a husband and wife sat in heavy silence inside the cab. They were returning home to their farm from the doctor.

"So... what did he say?" asked the man at last.

The woman sighed.

"He said I was mistaken," she replied. "As usual."

The man smiled sadly and kindly placed a hand his wife's shoulder.

"It's alright, Martha," he comforted. "We can always try again."

A tear ran down her cheek. She wiped it away slowly.

"Oh, Jonathan... I prayed so hard that God would let it be real this time," she said softly.

"Shh," Jonathan soothed quietly. "I know. We both did. But perhaps God is having us wait this long for a reason. Maybe He's preparing us for something bigger and better."

"Better than raising our own children?" she asked, looking at him tearfully.

Jonathan Kent leaned over and kissed his wife's cheek. She scooted closer to him and began to cry.

"We've waited for so long, and we've tried over and over again!" she wept. "I feel like it's my fault!"

"Shh. Don't talk like that. It's okay, hon," he reassured, hugging her closer. "It's okay. We're gonna be okay."

They rumbled along in silence for a little while; the only sounds to be heard being the crickets and the owls and Martha's sniffles.

"Jonathan?" she said at last, when she had calmed down.

"Yes, Martha," he answered.

"Would you recite my favorite Psalm for me?" she asked quietly. "Please?"

Jonathan smiled.

"Sure, darlin'," he said. "Anything to help you feel better."

"I think it would," she said.

"Well, alright, then."

Jonathan cleared his throat, and began.

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."

It had been hard for Jonathan Kent to take his wife to the doctor for the fourteenth time only to find out once again that there was no baby. Martha Clark-Kent wanted children so badly that lately, her mind had begun playing tricks on her. Now, as they headed home, they wondered why God had allowed this to happen to them again, unknowing that He was about to answer their prayers in a way they could never imagine. A way that would change their lives forever.

"Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."

He nudged her gently when he had finished.

"There. How'd I do?" he asked teasingly.

"Jonathan? What's that?" asked Martha, sitting up slightly.

"What's what, hon?" he asked, looking out the wind shield, trying to see what Martha was staring at.

"That," she pointed.

There, subtle and bright against the midnight-black sky was an enormous shooting star. It was hurtling downward at a great speed, and it was followed by the thunder of the atmosphere being broken open. They could hear what sounded like a rocket. As it came into better view, it began to take a different shape. Instead of a flaming meteor, it looked more like a spaceship. It was coming closer. And it was coming fast.

"What in tarnation?" said Martha in confusion.

"That ain't no shootin' star," Jonathan intoned warily.

"Oh my lands! It's headed straight for us!" Martha cried out.

"_Look out!_" yelled Jonathan.

Suddenly, a blinding light shone in their faces as whatever it was flew almost directly over their heads. Martha screamed. Jonathan swerved to the side as hard as he could, and nearly went off the road. A blast of sound and fire trailed behind it as the craft continued to shoot away from them.

"What in the world was _that_?!" exclaimed a very shaken Martha, as she clutched her husband's arm.

"How the heck should I know?" said Jonathan, as he tried to regain control of their vehicle.

"Pull over, Jonathan," Martha ordered, watching the rocket plummet into the brush through the back window of the truck.

"Martha, are you crazy? We gotta get home and call the authorities!" protested Jonathan.

"Please, Jonathan! Whoever it is might be hurt and need our help," she pleaded.

"But we don't even know who they are!" Jonathan continued. "They could be dangerous!"

"Jonathan, please?" she asked.

Jonathan stared at her in disbelief for about five seconds. Then smiling, he whipped a swift U-turn in defeat.

"You never did outgrow that taste for adventure," he commented wryly.

She grinned at him, and they turned around, headed back to where they had last seen the strange craft.

* * *

Whatever it was had landed in a shallow pond. Steam hissed up from the hot, shining metal as Jonathan parked the truck on the bank. Martha immediately hopped out, and fearlessly began to approach it. She waded into the now warm water to get closer.

"Martha! Get back here!" Jonathan insisted from the bank, where he now stood.

"Jonathan, come here, quick! I think there might be somebody inside!" she called, ignoring him.

"Martha, stop! No!"

Suddenly, the hood of the capsule burst open. Martha jumped back and slipped on a stone. She caught herself on the silty bottom of the pond and stood to face whatever was going to emerge from the spacecraft. However, nothing emerged.

Shakily, she wiped her soiled, wet hands on her jeans, as Jonathan rushed down the bank towards her.

"Martha! Are you alright?" he called.

But Martha didn't hear him. She had again approached the capsule and had dared to peek inside. She gasped and smiled.

There, swaddled in red, yellow and blue, lay a tiny, sleeping baby. His sweet lashes fell over his pinkish cheeks, for he was fast asleep. His coal black hair swept down over his forehead and his tiny, thin lips parted as he breathed in, for the very first time, Earth air. It was Kal-El; the last son and sole survivor of Krypton.

His eyelids began to flutter, and a tearful expression rose on his features as he began to awake. He stirred and fussed and set up a pitiful cry. It was more like a tiny wail of despair. Martha's heart smote her with love and pity - the infant cried out for his mother.

As Jonathan half ran, half slid down the sloping embankment to Martha's side, he too heard the baby's cry and stopped beside her.

"What the heck?" he wondered aloud.

"Look, Jonathan," said Martha dreamily. "It's a baby."

"Yeah, but who's baby?" he asked, scratching his head in bewilderment.

Martha reached in and pulled the little fellow out from beneath his protective bonds.

"Oh, Jonathan! He's absolutely lovely!" she exclaimed, cuddling the child to herself. "Shh, there, there now, little man," she soothed, gradually calming him down. "It's alright. You're not alone anymore, sweetheart. Shh. Everything is alright. Oh, isn't he adorable! Such a little darling!"

At the sound of her voice, Kal-El's eyes shot open in wonder. He took in the kind, motherly face and began to feel safe as he felt human warmth for the first time in three days. He sighed and allowed himself to be lulled into silence as Martha began to rock him from side to side. It was a pleasant feeling to be loved and cared for once again.

"Martha Clark-Kent, whatever can you be thinking?" said Jonathan, hands on hips.

"Can't we keep him, dear?" she said, speaking what he already knew was in her mind.

"Now, Martha-,"

"He needs us, Jonathan. He can't survive out here in the swamp all by himself. We have to help him. We're responsible for what happens to him, now!" she reasoned.

"But, Martha!" Jonathan tried to cut in.

At the sound of the raised voices, Kal-El's eyes opened again.

"Ah?" he said. It was a baby sound that seemed to ask what was wrong.

"Jonathan! Look! His eyes are open!" Martha exclaimed. "Look how lovely and blue they are! He is absolutely gorgeous! Oh, Jonathan, let's take him home with us, please!"

"Martha, we have no idea who he belongs to or where he comes from! Now, we can't just go taking in a little baby out of a crashed spaceship!" said Jonathan.

"He's just a baby, Jonathan!" Martha threw back. "He couldn't hurt a fly! And whoever he used to belong to has obviously abandoned the poor child! Now as to where he comes from, where does one come from in a spaceship? He could be from Mars for all we know! But I don't care! He's all alone in this world and completely helpless unless we do something!"

"But, Martha, maybe the Russians were using him to perform some sort of space experiment. They could be looking for him right now, for all we know! You wouldn't want to start another Cold War with the communists by kidnapping their kid test pilot, would you?" he protested.

"If he is a Russian science experiment, then I'd say that's still no life for a little baby, and it's our job to rescue him. Why, he could have been seriously injured in that crash," Martha refuted.

Jonathan smacked his forehead with his hand and rubbed the side of his face.

"Martha-" was all he could say before she went on.

"Jonathan! You said yourself that God might be having us wait for our own children by preparing us for something bigger and better! Well, this is plenty bigger and better, if you asked me!"

Jonathan grunted, unwilling to yield, yet still taking in what his wife was saying. It was, after all, what he himself had said only minutes ago.

"Darling, don't you see? This must be the thing that God's been preparing us for: to care for little Christopher!" she explained.

"Christopher?!" he exclaimed incredulously. "You've named him already?"

"What? You think Christopher's a little much? Maybe I should go with something a little simpler, a little more Smallville," said Martha meditatively.

"Martha, you can't be serious about this. I mean, everyone knows we can't have children. How will we explain him?" he pointed out.

Martha looked up into her husband's eyes.

"We'll just tell them the truth. That God brought him to us," she said determinedly.

Jonathan was stunned into silence by the idea. He looked down at the little baby, clinging to Martha's fingertips seemingly for his life. A wave of compassion washed over him as the child looked into his eyes with his own clear blue ones, and Jonathan could feel himself relenting under the sweetness of the infant's gaze.

He felt his wife's hand on his arm.

"God has finally answered our prayers by sending this little stranger into our lives. I don't know all the answers about this little traveler, but I believe that God has a purpose for him. And His plan has obviously already begun taking place by us finding him. Have faith, Jonathan," Martha encouraged. "Believe with me. Trust Him with me."

Jonathan looked from Martha to Kal-El, then back again. This was so hard. In his mind, he heard no, but in his heart he felt yes...

At length, he ventured to touch the baby. Kal-El giggled and latched onto Jonathan's finger. Jonathan smiled. The kid definitely had a grip. And those eyes, so clear and pure; they were trying to ask him something. Please, maybe?

"Alright," he finally gave in. "I guess he does need somebody to look out for the little fella'. And seeing as we're the only folks around-,"

"Oh, thank you, Jonathan!" said Martha, hugging him. "Thank you, Lord!"

"Well, come on, we can't stand here in the swamp all night, and we certainly can't leave this thing sitting out here, either. Might start a panic about aliens or some such nonsense," said Jonathan, beginning to help his wife and new son back up the bank.

"I think I may have the perfect name for him," said Martha, completely absorbed in the baby.

"Yeah? And what's that?" asked a grunting Jonathan, who was now attempting to drag the life-craft out of the pond.

"How about Clark. Clark Kent," suggested Martha. "He can have my maiden name. It looks and sounds just beautiful on him."

"Yep, that's perfect. Peachy keen," said Jonathan still just a bit bewildered by the entire affair.

Only hours ago, he'd come from a doctor that had always said the Kent's couldn't have children. Now, suddenly, out of the sky and into a pond, came a baby in a small spaceship, and he had a son.

"What a night," he muttered to himself as he hoisted the small rocket capsule onto the bed of the pickup truck. "What a night..."

Martha chuckled to herself as Jonathan got in the truck and started it up again to head back for home.

"Tomorrow, first thing we're gonna do is take him to an orphanage and adopt him legally," said Jonathan, carefully backing his way out of the woodsy area. "Wouldn't want anyone contesting us as to being his rightful parents."

"Do you think he'll like me?" asked Martha absently.

Jonathan smiled at his wife and baby.

"I think little Clark is gonna love you," he answered.

"Us," she reminded with a smile.

"Us," Jonathan repeated, as they got back onto the country road.

"I can't wait till he's old enough to talk," Martha went on. "Welcome to our family, Clark."

The baby was falling asleep. He sighed. Martha's heart couldn't help making that wonderful jumping feeling whenever Kal-El made a sound. She smiled down at his peaceful face.

"Clark," she said his pretty name again. "My godsend baby... My baby..."

* * *

_"Live as one of them, Kal-El, to discover where your strength and your power are needed. Always hold in your heart the pride of your special heritage. They can be a great people, Kal-El, should they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you... _

_**my only son." **_

_- Jor-El, Superman: The Movie, 1978_

Fin.

* * *

***Starts playing John William's theme song***

**We all know where this will end up in the future. I'm not my proudest of this, so thanks for any positive feedback; it will help me feel like I didn't completely fail the fandom! **

**Keep believing in truth, justice, and the American Way, and thanks for reading!**

**Special thanks to my guest reviewer! Here is a Kryptonian cookie! O.o**

**I know this might have made you want more, but, it's been so long, I really don't think I could get back into this and do it justice - no pun intended.**

**However, if you want a sequel, something awesome to go read after this would be A Greater Duty by the amazing Sylvr. Just imagine neither of them (Bruce and Kal-Clark) remember anything about what happened that night, and you should be fine; it's a great sequel to this and she did a much better job than I did with this fandom!**

**R.I.P. Christopher Reeve; 1952-2004**

**You really were a super man.**


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